Author Archives: Alison Zak

Many years ago, I learned how to be a good literary citizen from books like Carolyn See’s Making a Literary Life and podcasts like #AmWriting. The first time I ever reached out to an author that I admired was in 2007. I sent an email to Janis Huggins about how much I loved her bookContinue reading “10 Ways to Support Your Favorite Authors”

This piece was originally posted on the OneNature blog on October 12, 2022. I saw my first spotted lanternfly recently. The insect flew onto another woman’s leg where I saw it alive on her bare skin. Then she knocked it to the ground as her child asked, “Can I squash it?”  I heard the stomp.Continue reading “Holding Space for Contradiction in Conservation”

I read 112 books this year. That includes kids’ books, because they are books too! How do I keep count? On StoryGraph– the non-Amazon version of Goodreads. Here are my favorite books that I READ in 2022, in no particular order. Each title is linked to Bookshop.org, a great non-Amazon alternative for online book buying thatContinue reading “My Favorite Books of 2022”

It is said that everyone has a turtle story… Long ago, after a violent storm, sailors clung to chunks of splintered wood, the remaining bits of their wrecked ship. Cold, thirsty, and weakening with every crest and trough of the waves, they floated in the infinite sea. As night fell, one sailor gave up, releasedContinue reading “Turtle Story: Jataka Retelling”

Question: If you could be any animal, who would you be? Depending on my mood, I answer either ‘kingfisher’ or ‘osprey.’ I want the relative security of predator status without the burden of hunting furry food. (I don’t like eating peaches with the skin on, but I sure miss Vishu’s baked salmon!) I want toContinue reading “Answer: Osprey”

‘Tis the season for my annual book list! PSA: Whenever possible, PLEASE support local, independent bookstores, instead of Amazon, as you shop for books this holiday season. I will link all the titles below to Bookshop.org which is a great way to shop online while still supporting indies. As always, these are books I readContinue reading “The Almost Anthropologist’s Favorite Books of 2021”

As an environmental educator and yoga teacher, I LOVE incorporating mindfulness practices into nature programs. I believe that encouraging mindfulness outside helps students of all ages to become present in both time and place. Sometimes it’s as simple as having a quiet moment out on the hiking trail to listen for birds. Other times IContinue reading “Yoga & Mindfulness Resources for Environmental Educators”

Mandala is the Sanskrit word for CIRCLE. Mandalas are used in many of the world’s cultures and religions as devotional images that symbolize the universe in its ideal form. The creation of a mandala signifies the transformation of a universe of suffering into one of joy. There are examples of mandalas in nature as well,Continue reading “Earth Mandalas: Practicing Mindfulness in Nature”

I couldn’t remember if I read The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe as a kid until I got to the scene about Turkish Delight. (How many little, American kids trudged through that chapter wondering, “What the heck is Turkish Delight? And if it’s so delicious, why haven’t I tried any?!”) Anyway, I was inspiredContinue reading “The Beavers of Narnia”

Fighting Beavers for Years! is the subject line of an email I recently received. The message described a pond with an overflow pipe clogged with branches and mud. A neighbor with helpful intentions recommended trapping and killing the beavers-to-blame, which they did year after year, in an endeavor they described as a “constant battle.” EveryContinue reading ““Fighting Beavers for Years!””

Happy International Beaver Day! Ready to bust some beaver myths and misunderstandings? Beavers do not eat fish. Beavers are strictly herbivores, but they don’t eat only trees either! As ‘choosy generalists,’ their diet consists of many species (80+) of woody, herbaceous, and aquatic plants. Most people blame author C. S. Lewis for the common misunderstandingContinue reading “Beavers Eat Fish and Other Myths”

Silhouettes of leafless trees are backlit by clouds smeared across the sky, which from heaven to horizon, is pale blue, blush gold-orange, then smoky plum. The sparrows settle in for the night, fidgeting like my dog when he digs and spins before sinking into the curated folds of the comforter. A light breeze brings theContinue reading “Waiting for Woodcock”